Businesses in England required to close due to local lockdowns or targeted restrictions will now be able to receive grants worth up to £1,500 every three weeks, which will be treated as taxable income.

To be eligible for the grant, a business must have been required to close due to local Covid-19 restrictions.

Any businesses still closed at a national level, such as nightclubs, will not be eligible.

The largest companies will receive £1,500 every three weeks they are required to close, while smaller businesses will be given £1,000.

Each new, three-week lockdown period triggers an additional payment.

Steve Barclay, chief secretary to the Treasury, said: “These grants provide businesses with a safety net as they temporarily close their doors to help save lives in their local areas.

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“As local economies eventually and carefully re-open after local interventions, our Plan for Jobs is there waiting to help businesses get back on their feet, protect jobs and thrive in the future.”

The payments will be distributed based on the rateable value of the premises the business occupies:

• businesses occupying premises with a rateable value of less than £51,000, or a property or part of a property subject to an annual rent or mortgage payment of less than £51,000, will receive £1,000
• businesses occupying premises with a rateable value of exactly £51,000 or above, or occupies a property or part of a property subject to an annual rent or mortgage payment of exactly £51,000 or above, will receive £1,500

Currently, these payments are available in Blackburn with Darwen, Pendle, and Oldham, as part of an ongoing trial scheme.

Business Secretary, Alok Sharma, commented: “No business should be punished for doing the right thing, which is why [the] package will offer additional breathing space for businesses that have had to temporarily close to control the virus.

“Through our wider Plan for Jobs, we will continue to back our innovators and job creators across the country who are playing a critical role as we build back better from the pandemic.”

Local authorities will also receive an additional 5% top-up amount of business support funding to enable them to help other businesses affected by closures which may not be on the business rates list. 

Payments made to businesses from this discretionary fund can be any amount up to £1,500 and may be less than £1,000 in some cases.